Resolution chief in fresh bid for Friends Provident

LONDON: Friends Provident Plc, the 177-year-old UK life insurer, said it entered discussions with Resolution Ltd after receiving a revised offer that values the company at 1.86 billion pounds ($3.1 billion).

Resolution, the buyout company founded by insurance entrepreneur Clive Cowdery, offered 0.9 of a share for each Friends Provident share, the Dorking, England-based insurer said. The offer, which includes a partial cash alternative of as much as 500 million pounds, is 12 percent more than Friends Provident's Aug 7 closing price.

Cowdery is making his third attempt to buy the insurer in the past month after having earlier offers turned down. The former head of General Electric Co's European insurance arm is using 600 million pounds raised from a December initial public offering to buy fund managers and insurers. Resolution spokesman Alex Child-Villiers declined to comment.